, is a Japanese
game producer
A video game producer is the top person in charge of overseeing development of a video game.
History
The earliest documented use of the term ''producer'' in games was by Trip Hawkins, who established the position when he founded Electronic Ar ...
,
director and
designer
A designer is a person who plans the form or structure of something before it is made, by preparing drawings or plans.
In practice, anyone who creates tangible or intangible objects, products, processes, laws, games, graphics, services, or exp ...
who works for
Square Enix
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...
. He is known as the director of ''
Final Fantasy VI
also known as ''Final Fantasy III'' from its initial North American release, is a 1994 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' s ...
'' (1994), ''
Final Fantasy IX
is a 2000 role-playing video game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth game in the main ''Final Fantasy'' series. The plot focuses on a wa ...
'' (2000) and ''
Final Fantasy XII
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. The twelfth main installment of the '' Final Fantasy'' series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open ...
'' (2006) and as the creator of the
Active Time Battle
In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based.
Real-time
Real-time games have game time progress con ...
(ATB) system in the ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' series.
Biography
After graduating from
Tokyo Zokei University
is a private university in Hachioji, Tokyo, Japan, founded in 1966 by Japanese art educator, fashion designer and design journalist, Yoko Kuwasawa (1910-1977). It is a four-year art college offering both bachelor's and master's degrees in studio ...
, Ito joined
Square
In Euclidean geometry, a square is a regular quadrilateral, which means that it has four equal sides and four equal angles (90-degree angles, π/2 radian angles, or right angles). It can also be defined as a rectangle with two equal-length adj ...
in 1987.
He initially worked on ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' and ''
Final Fantasy II
*
is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1988 for the Family Computer as the second installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series. The game has received numerous enhanced remakes for the WonderSwan Color, the P ...
'' as a
debugger
A debugger or debugging tool is a computer program used to software testing, test and debugging, debug other programs (the "target" program). The main use of a debugger is to run the target program under controlled conditions that permit the pr ...
but first became genuinely involved with game development while creating sound effects for ''
Final Fantasy III
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Family Computer. The third installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series, it is the first numbered ''Final Fantasy'' game to feature the job-change system. The story revolve ...
''.
His next major role was as the designer of the
Active Time Battle
In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based.
Real-time
Real-time games have game time progress con ...
system for ''
Final Fantasy IV
known as ''Final Fantasy II'' for its initial North American release, is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. Released in 1991, it is the fourth main instal ...
''.
Square filed a Japanese
patent application
A patent application is a request pending at a patent office for the grant of a patent for an invention described in the patent specification and a set of one or more claims stated in a formal document, including necessary official forms and re ...
related to the ATB system on 16 July 1991 and a corresponding US application on 16 March 1992. One Japanese patent (JP2794230) and two US patents (US5390937 and US5649862) were granted based on these applications.
For ''
Final Fantasy V
is a fantasy role-playing video game developed and published by Square in 1992. It is the fifth main installment of the ''Final Fantasy'' series. The game first appeared only in Japan on Nintendo's Super Famicom (known internationally as the Su ...
'', Ito designed the fully customizable
Job system.
He also created the 'Chicken Knife or Brave Blade' choosing event.
''
Final Fantasy VI
also known as ''Final Fantasy III'' from its initial North American release, is a 1994 role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It is the sixth main entry in the ''Final Fantasy'' s ...
'' marked the first time that Ito became a director on a game. For this title, he was in charge of all battle aspects.
He was also responsible for the battle systems in ''
Final Fantasy VIII
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square for the PlayStation console. Released in 1999, it is the eighth main installment in the ''Final Fantasy'' series. Set on an unnamed fantasy world with science fiction elements, t ...
'' and ''
Final Fantasy Tactics
is a 1997 tactical role-playing game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. Released in Japan in June 1997 and in the United States in January 1998 by Sony ...
'' before he once more took on the role of director with ''
Final Fantasy IX
is a 2000 role-playing video game developed and published by Square (video game company), Square for the PlayStation (console), PlayStation video game console. It is the ninth game in the main ''Final Fantasy'' series. The plot focuses on a wa ...
''.
Ito had the idea to make its protagonist
Zidane Tribal
is a fictional character in the ''Final Fantasy'' series and the main protagonist of ''Final Fantasy IX''. He was conceived and written by Hironobu Sakaguchi, while his appearance was designed by Yoshitaka Amano and re-interpreted by Toshiyuki ...
flirtatious towards women.
In mid-2005,
Square Enix
is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company, production enterprise and entertainment conglomerate, best known for its ''Final Fantasy'', ''Dragon Quest'', ''Star Ocean'' and ''Kingdom Hearts'' role-playing video game ...
announced that
Yasumi Matsuno
is a Japanese video game designer. Matsuno was first introduced to video games in arcades while waiting for the train, and first played '' Space Invaders'' and '' Xevious'' there. He attended Hosei University for foreign policy but dropped ou ...
had left the company due to an illness but would be acting as a supervisor on ''
Final Fantasy XII
is a role-playing video game developed and published by Square Enix. The twelfth main installment of the '' Final Fantasy'' series, it was first released for the PlayStation 2 in 2006. It introduced several innovations to the series: an open ...
''. Ito was appointed as the director of the game. Matsuno apologized for the long development time of the project but guaranteed players that it was "progressing in its development under the hands of excellent staffs".
Ito created the License Board of ''Final Fantasy XII'' with the intention to give the player much freedom in developing characters to their liking without becoming too complicated.
At the Square Enix Party 2007 pre-conference meeting in May 2007, he was introduced on stage as the producer and director of the newly announced ''Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System''.
He stated later that he considered the game design and battle system of ''Final Fantasy XII'' a "definitive contribution to the gaming lexicon" and that it had "the potential to shine in future games".
In about 2012, Ito was tasked by producer Shinichi Tatsuke with the creation of a battle system for a new game. However, the plan changed and he was told a week later that there was a different project to consider. Tatsuke now requested a concept for a social game which he felt was an interesting opportunity to have Ito work on, given his experience with simple Nintendo Entertainment System game systems. This concept became ''
Guardian Cross''.
In September 2012, Ito said that he would work on another ''Final Fantasy'' game if the company's president wished for it.
The corporate executive of Square Enix's 1st Production Department,
Shinji Hashimoto, mentioned in July 2013 that Ito was "planning and doing some proposals for a new project" and "putting some ideas together".
Game design and impact
As the
game designer
Game design is the art of applying design and aesthetics to create a game for entertainment or for educational, exercise, or experimental purposes. Increasingly, elements and principles of game design are also applied to other interactions, in ...
of a ''
Final Fantasy
is a Japanese video game, Japanese science fantasy anthology media franchise created by Hironobu Sakaguchi and developed and owned by Square Enix (formerly Square (video game company), Square). The franchise centers on a series of fantasy and ...
'' game, Ito tries to balance the story and
event scenes with the gameplay.
When he begins his work on a title, he does not consider the story at hand but rather adapts his game system to it as closely as possible over the time. He thinks that it is his job to smoothly implement a game so the people in charge of the stories do not have to worry about this aspect.
He also believes that the most important factor of the ''Final Fantasy'' series is the player's feeling of accomplishment after beating the game and seeing "The End" on the screen.
Professional sports were the primary inspiration behind Ito's battle systems.
The monsters in ''Final Fantasy IV'' and the Gambit system in ''Final Fantasy XII'' resemble aspects of the
NFL in that their actions are based on the most likely outcome of a specific situation.
The Active Time Battle system was similarly inspired by
Formula One
Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
, as Ito had the idea to give characters different speed values after seeing a race in which the cars passed each other. These values would then become the basis for the battle system and dictate when it will be a character's turn.
At the
CESA
Cesa is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Caserta in the Italian region Campania, located about north of Naples and about southwest of Caserta.
Cesa borders the following municipalities: Aversa, Gricignano di Aversa, Sant'Antimo, ...
2006
Japan Game Awards
The Japan Game Awards is the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's awards ceremony, which was created in 1996 as the Computer Entertainment Supplier's Association, CESA Awards. While it repres ...
held on 22 September 2006, Ito accepted the "Grand Award" and "Award for Excellence" for ''Final Fantasy XII''. He thanked the development team, longtime fans and new players alike and said that the team was grateful for the awards as they could not possibly think about the game's reception during its creation.
His comment at the ceremony was: "I did my best to bring new and innovative elements to this work. I'm very happy that something like this, which was one of the more challenging games to create in the Final Fantasy series, has received this award. To return the favor to the users who've played this game and who regard it so highly, I'm determined to continue creating by always reminding myself of the need to rise to new challenges."
Tetsuya Nomura
is a Japanese video game artist, designer and director working for Square Enix (formerly Square). He designed characters for the ''Final Fantasy'' series, debuting with ''Final Fantasy VI'' and continuing with various later installments. Addit ...
considers Ito one of his four "seniors" at the company and a likely influence on his battle planning.
He also stated that he was taught the basics of game design by Ito.
Works
References
External links
Famitsu interview about ''Final Fantasy XII International Zodiac Job System''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ito, Hiroyuki
Living people
Final Fantasy designers
Japanese video game designers
Japanese video game directors
Japanese video game producers
Square Enix people
Year of birth missing (living people)
Tokyo Zokei University alumni